Byward market

Since the 1840s, Byward Market (known simply as “The Market” to locals), just east of Sussex Drive and north of Rideau Street, has been a centre for the sale of farm produce, but it’s now also Ottawa’s busiest district, buzzing until the early hours. At its heart, the 1920s Byward Market building (mid-May to mid-Oct daily 6am–6pm; mid-Oct to mid-May daily 8am–5pm; w byward-market.com) is home to cafés and delis, specialist food and fresh fruit and vegetable stalls and these merge with the street stalls and kiosks outside. These stalls and kiosks are something of an Ottawa institution, mainly on account of their poutine (fries covered in gravy and cheese curds), but Beavertails, at the junction of George and William streets, weighs in with its eponymous offering, a flat, deep-fried dough sprinkled with all sorts of sweet toppings.